President condemns fresh attack on Bali

Rendi Witular, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Stunned by deadly explosions in the resort island of Bali, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono immediately held a press conference on Saturday in which he condemned the blasts as terrorist attacks. "The blasts were clearly terrorist attacks as the targets were random and were done in public places," said Susilo only an hour after the blasts.

Top government and key security officials, with the exception of Vice President Jusuf Kalla, were present at the press conference held at Halim Perdana Kusumah air base.

Speaking to journalists, the retired four-star general explained that necessary measures were being taken to treat the victims and investigate the blasts. The President himself would visit the blast sites on Sunday "in order to ensure correct measures are taken to handle the post-blast situation."

The President said the blasts were regrettable, happening precisely when Bali was enjoying economic growth even better than the situation before the Bali bombings in 2002 in which over 200 people were killed, mostly foreign tourists.

The President disclosed at the press conference that the government had actually received intelligence information in July that terrorist networks from Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines were planning attacks in Jakarta.

"The terrorists had even prepared the bombs," said the President, adding that after receiving the information he had ordered security personnel to beef up security in the capital, but apparently the terrorists had refocused their attention to Bali. Susilo expressed his condolences to the victims of Jimbaran and Kuta blasts and called on the public to work harder to prevent terrorism from taking place in the nation.

The blasts have piled on the problems that Susilo must confront. He is currently facing mounting public protests after his government increased fuel prices by an average 126 percent.